Knars is an electroacoustic composition that explores sound as a malleable substance, capable of shifting between brittle clarity and dense, amorphous mass. The piece prioritizes timbre, texture, and spatial behavior, allowing sound itself to function as the primary compositional material.
At the core of Knars lies a process of transformation. Crystalline sound splinters gradually melt into moldable, amorphous sonic matter. Short, percussive figures—often sharp and granular—grind against sustained spectral textures, producing rhythmic friction and a stuttering sense of continuity. These interactions create a dynamic tension between impulse and resonance, instability and persistence.
The compositional approach is deliberately constructed from the inside out. Small, randomly generated rhythmic patterns built from percussive sounds are shaped and linked together, branching outward into increasingly complex clusters. Through layering and accumulation, these microstructures evolve into dense sonic fields, allowing the minute gestures to define the larger musical form.
Knars immerses the listener in an environment where sound is perceived as evolving matter—continuously reshaped by force, friction, and resonance. The piece was awarded both the first prize and the public prize ex aequo at the 10th Biennial Acousmatic Composition Competition Métamorphoses 2018 in Belgium.
